Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Secretary DeVos pledged that any federally backed voucher program would require participating schools to fully comply with national special education law. But what does that law say about the issue?

In a Senate budget hearing Tuesday, DeVos repeatedly told lawmakers that, "Schools that receive federal funds must follow federal law, period." But she also left questions unanswered about discrimination with respect to voucher programs.

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos told senators at a budget hearing that she wouldn't subject states' Every Student Succeeds Act plans to her personal policy preferences. But that didn't satisfy everyone.

At a Capitol Hill hearing, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos faced Republicans skeptical about slashing some programs, and Democrats worried about civil rights protections under any federally funded vouchers.

President Trump has tapped Peter Oppenheim to serve as an assistant secretary in the education department. And U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has named new aides for special education and higher ed.

The politics of education have been cast in a new light thanks to the election of President Donald Trump, and a panel at the Education Writers Association annual meeting on Wednesday reflected the shifting currents for K-12.